Universal Analytics marks Google’s effort to bring new features like cross-platform and mobile app analytics, as well as the ability to incorporate data from offline sources, to Google Analytics.

According to JiaJing Wang, Analytics product manager: “Universal analytics is meant to help business owners understand the changing, multi-device customer journey.”

To use the new platform, users need to install the new analytics.js code snippet and the appropriate SDKs for the mobile apps.

This new JavaScript code snippet, Google notes, is more flexible than the old one and gives users more options to customize their data. Businesses will also have to set up a new web property in their Analytics accounts to get started with using Universal Analytics.

Google said here are the benefits:

• Understanding how customers interact with your businesses across many devices and touch-points

• Insights into the performance of your mobile apps

• Improvements of lead generation and ROI by incorporating offline and online interactions so you can understand which channels drive the best results